Navy slotbacks make presence felt against Bearcats

The Midshipmen played against Cincinnati during Saturday afternoon's game, held at Navy Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis.

(Matthew Cole)

John Evansjoevans@capgaznews.com

In Navy’s offense, a lot of backs get a chance to touch the ball and the success isn’t in only how hard the line blocks and how well the quarterback executes the option, but it also has a great deal to do with how the slotbacks block for each other.

Never was that more evident than in Saturday’s 42-32 Navy win over Cincinnati, as six slotbacks accounted for 333 of the team’s 569 rushing yards, the second highest total in school history. Actually, Navy had set the record at 573 yards until quarterback Zach Abey took a knee on the last two plays of the game, subtracting four yards.

Nobody even seemed to care. What was evident was the pleasure and confidence the A backs took in not just running, but also blocking for each other.

“The A backs did a great job of blocking all day, just the way we are taught to,” said Josh Brown, who scored on runs of 24 and 39 yards and gained 79 yards (a career best) on just four rushes. “We know if we don’t block for each other, we aren’t going to play and it will be the next guy in. It’s no different when someone gets hurt.”

Leading the backs was Malcolm Perry, who had 100 yards for his first career 100-yard day. Also setting personal bests were Brown, Tre Walker (who gained 68 yards in his first start before being injured in the second quarter), John Brown III (24 yards) and freshman Keoni Makekau, who had 33 yards in his debut appearance. Jahmaal Daniel had a season-high 29 yards.

Walker made his start in place of the injured Darryl Bonner and ran 74 yards on the team’s first play, only to have the score nullified by a penalty. He got injured returning a kickoff in the second quarter.

Two men down, the remaining slotbacks banded together to fashion one of the best group performances ever by Navy slotbacks.

“We have done a great job of recruiting at slotback, we’re really deep at the slotback position,” said Navy head coach Ken Niumatalolo. “(Slotback) Coach (Danny) O’Rourke really had those guys prepared …. He’s hard on them, but he loves every one of them.”

Niumatalolo further complimented the group, who he referred to as “clones“ of each other, saying they showed Saturday that they may be ready to follow in a long line of great Navy units.

“It’s like a brotherhood….and they just keep passing that legacy down,” Niumatalolo said of the recruiting and coaching job done by O’Rourke and his staff.

The backs were more pleased with their blocking than their running. All game long, backs were knocking down defenders on the corners to set other backs free, and were making more blocks downfield to turn double-digit gains into even larger gains.

“If feels good to have a day like today but we feel more pride if we get knockdowns on defenders,” said Josh Brown. “It’s a given we’re going to make plays, but it’s not a given that we’ll get our knockdowns.

“We have a board that counts how many knockdowns we have each game so our goal is to block for the next guy, the guy behind us,” Brown added. “We have to put all our trust in him when we’re carrying the ball. That’s what happened today. People got on the ground and A’s (backs) made plays.”

Brown had special praise for Makekau, who was getting his first action ever: “I was real proud of him today and the way he drew up on the edge on one of my touchdowns. It was a great block and he had a couple of nice runs himself.”

Perry said the team “made a lot of plays” because it had practiced against the Bearcats’ defense all week and were well prepared.

“Just the feeling of getting them on the ground makes you feel great,” he said. “That’s doing my job is to cut people on the perimeter.”

O’Rourke said he sets high standards for his players, but nothing that they can’t accomplish.

“That’s the way I expect them to play,” he said. “They played well. They all get reps in practice. All of them are coached the exact same, nobody gets treated different. They should be able to play.”

He also spoke about how deep is group has now showed itself to be.

“(With the injuries) it got to a point where we had to play guys who had never played before playing. If that’s the way they play in practice, then that’s the way they should play in the game,” he said.

Brown did admit, however, to having a little more incentive than the others.

“My little brother plays for Northwestern and last week he got his first touchdown so I felt kind of bad that I didn’t have any,” he joked, adding that even though he got four carries, he was given great chances to score.

“I had to take advantage of the opportunities given me, or otherwise it would have been a waste of some great blocks,” he said.